There has been plenty of agitation for Apple to pull the next generation hardware technology out of a magician's hat. That thinking jumps the gun because Apple already has the ultimate hardware platforms in place to support its "Kit" initiatives. One of them is called the iPhone.
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The Apple II started the home computer revolution (along with the Radio Shack's TRS-80 and the Commodore P.E.T.) That basic technology, the PC, lasted from 1978 to 2010 when the iPad launched the Post-PC era.
No one can reliably predict when it's time for an old technology to fade away, and the next generation replacement can seldom be forcefully fit into the marketplace successfully. For example, the Samsung Gear was a product built on a foundation of envy and panic, not solving a fundamental human problem. Eventually, the developments of technology create the foundation for a new way of doing things. But there must be an expert shepherding to market.
For example, Microsoft had a head start on tablets years ago, but the display hardware, Windows and styluses weren't the droid the public was looking for. It took a combination of hardware development plus Apple's expertise in user interfaces to make the iPad wildly successful.
Today, the observation that each successive generation of technology comes faster and faster is just that. It's an observation. What it isn't, however, is a rule that can be depended upon to insist that the current generation of hardware is obsolete.
And so what we really have is the modern smartphone, like the iPhone, whose capabilities continues to grow and grow and support creative ideas. I can just imagine Apple engineers pondering home automation concept and thinking, "Hey, we already have the perfect platform, and it's one that our customers always have in their pockets!"
It's already in your pocket!
Defining a Model for Apple's Ecosystem
When we think about Apple, we often think about hardware or services in isolation. The global model of Apple's ecosystem is seldom formally modeled. However, TMO's Adam Christianson has done just that. The basic idea there is that Apple's hardware and services rebrands data into a coherent whole. That is, we access information on Apple products, which are our "front end" and we don't really care where it all resides so long as we can access it, manipulate and share it in the way we need to.
What's more, the integration of services and data amongst our various platforms of choice with increasing "continuity" means that all our our tools work seamlessly in a fashion we want to complete our tasks. So long as the hardware can do this, it will not become obsolete. The irrational outcry for a new device to supersede the current hardware fails to take into account the whole picture of Apple's evolving ecosystem.
The MVC View
Computer programming has the concept of Model, View and Controller. It's a way to think about implementing a User Interface (UI), and it normally applies to our interaction with an app or OS functions.
What if the concept were to be scaled up so that it encompasses the entire hardware, software, data and services from Apple? That's how we are beginning to understand how Apple is thinking and how its platforms are leveraged by users.
Model. The data Model comes from web services like search, distant or local documents, location, music, photos, apps that provide data on health and fitness, state of the home, financial data and purchases, contact information, reminders, calendars, entertainment feeds, and so on.
View. This is the interface for human beings. How does one get at the information? For example, the Mac, iPad and iPhone construct our Views via the User Interface. Plus, the better Apple's devices work in concert to share Views, the more powerful the hardware family becomes without having to function exactly the same way.
Controller. Finally, the Controller is the framework that ties it all together into a coherent, useful whole. These include the various Kits that Apple continues to develop. There are formal integration Kits like HomeKit, CloudKit, HealthKit CarPlay and Family Sharing. There are Integrators like Notifications Center, Spotlight/search, and Handoff. Finally, then we have UI extensions that present and/or format like the Finder and Siri.
The Whole Shebang
Seen in this light, Apple's current hardware nicely fleshes out the desired platforms for this kind of MVC model. When new data appears, it fits into this infrastructure, usually without the need for new hardware. An obvious exception is iWatch, which we expect to feed medical data into Controllers and Views.
As mentioned above, some have been thinking that a mythical, next generation hardware gadget that supersedes the iPad would be required for Apple to maintain its dominance in some kind of fanciful marketshare driven scenario. In contrast, the model above suggests that, given the 800 million iOS devices and 80 million Macs in place, the MVC model is all that's needed to serve the customers.
Thinking ahead, it's my own notion that it is presentation and display hardware technology that will be evolving. For example, 4K displays and larger iPhones (and perhaps iPads) mean that the above model can be implemented more effectively. But I digress.
The model described above is how Adam and I are starting to see Apple in the summer of 2014. When it's time for new hardware from Apple, it will be obvious and compelling.
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Magician's hat via Shutterstock.
